Brake beam



Sept. 23, 1947.vl W, H, BASELT 2,427,893

BRAKE BEAM l Filed March 25, 1944 Patented Sept. 23, 1947 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE BRAKE BEALM Walter H. Baselt, Chicago, Ill., assigner to American Steel Foundries, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of New Jersey 3 Claims.

l My invention relates to a novel brake beam and method of making the same and more particularly to a railway brake .beam of so-called` unit type comprising guide portions extending outwardly of the brake heads for slidable cooperation with support brackets on an associated railway car truck structure.

The general object of my invention is to design a unit beam which may be economically manufactured and which is capable of long life in service under the severe stresses imposed by railway braking conditions.

A specific object of my invention is the provision of lugs on the brake heads snugly fitted between the spaced webs of the U-section compression member to afford the desired rigidity therefor Without the necessity of utilizing filler blocks.

Another object of my invention is to design a fabricated beam of the above described type in which all of the elements thereof are spot welded into a particularly rigid structure.

In my novel beam, the tension member is spot welded between the spaced webs of the compression member, and each brake head and associated wear plate means are spot welded at a common point to the external surfaces of said webs.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan View of my novel brake beam, only one end thereof being illustrated inasmuch as it is symmetrical about its transverse center line.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary front elevation, and Figure 3 is an end View of the structure shown in Figure 1.

Describing my invention in detail, the beam comprises tension and compression members generally designated 2 and 4 respectively and a strut 6 connected therebetween at the transverse center line of the beam, said strut being formed and arranged for connection in conventional manner to an associated brake lever (not shown).

The compression member 4 is bent at each extremity thereof into a relatively thin end portion of U-section with top and bottom webs 8 and l and an intervening arcuate rear wall l2, said rear wall being formed with a longitudinal slot i4 extending inwardly from the extremity thereof. The tension member 2 is snugly fitted at each end thereof between the associated webs 8 and lil and is spot welded thereto at i5 and i8 (Figure 1), the slot I4 serving to minimize shunting of the electric current during the welding at i6 adjacent the extremity of the beam.

Top and bottom wear plates 2Q and 22 are seated respectively against the top and bottom surfaces of the webs 8 and IS, each of said wear plates being of L section with the depending leg 24 of the top plate 20 and the upstanding leg 26 of the bottom plate 22 overlapping the eX- tremity of the beam, and it may be noted that the plates 26 and 22 respectively are provided with the projections 28 and 30 extending forwardly of the compression member to afford maximum bearing areas for slidable engagement with support brackets (not shown) on the associated truck structure. It will be observed in Figures 2 and 3 that the top and bottom plates 2!) and 2?. are formed and arranged in looking-glass symmetry whereby the same may be mounted on either of the end portions of the compression member.

The brake head generally designated 32 comprises a front wall 34 formed with the spaced top lugs 36, 36 having top and bottom tie ribs 38 and 4D extending therebetween, and said front wall is also formed with spaced bottom lugs 42, 42 with top and bottomV tie ribs 44 and 46 extending therebetween, said tie ribs and said wall 34 defining a keyway for the reception of an associated key (not shown) which functions, as will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art, to maintain associated brake shoe means (not shown) in assembled relationship with the brake head lugs.

The front wall 34 of the brake head is integrally formed intermediate its ends with the top and bottom rearwardly extending walls 4B and 50 defining therebetween a brake beam cavity for the reception of the compression member end portion. and the wear plates 23 and 22, said walls 48 and 50 and the plates 2D and 22 being afforded a com, mon spot weld as at 52 (Figure l) to the top and bottom webs 8 and l El of the compression member.

integrally formed with the front wall 34 and each of the top and bottom walls 48 and 50 are spaced side walls 54 and 56 converging toward the rear extremity of the brake head 32, It may be noted that the wall 34 is seated against the forward edges of lthe compression member webs 8 and Il), whereby the camber of the compression member indicated at X (Figure 1) positions the forward face of the :brakehead at a slight angle approximately corresponding to the angle of taper of an associated railway car truck wheel, said angle of taper being one inch in twenty according to A. A, R. standards. It will be apparent that the converging relationship of the side walls 54 and 5G permits this angularity of the head without encroaching on the guide surfaces of the beam outwardly of the head.

The wall 34 is formed with a lug 58 snugly fitted between the top and bottom webs 8 and l!) of the compression member for the purpose 0i increasing the rigidity thereof without the necessity of utilizing separate filler blocks.

In fabricating my novel brake beam, the compression member 4 is bent at its ends to form the relatively thin endl` portions thereof, and thereafter the slot I4 is formed in the rear Wall I2 of each end portion as by cutting with a saw or other suitable instrument. EachV end of the tension member 2 is then inserted between the top and bottom webs 8 and l0 of the associated compression member end portion and is spot welded to said webs as at I6 and I8, the slot I4- minimizing shunting of the electric current during formation of the Weld at |6- adjacent the extremity of the beam. Thereafter the Wear plates and 22 and the brake head 34 are placed in their proper assembled position and are spot Welded at 52 to the webs 8 and I0.

It is to be understood that I do not wish to be limited by the exact embodiment of the device shown which is merely by Way of illustration and` not limitation as various and other forms of the device will, of course, be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims,

I claim:

1. In a brake beam of truss type, a compression member having an end portion comprising spaced webs and an intervening rear Wall with an elongated slot therein extended inwardly from the extremity thereof, a tension member of uniform cross section throughout its length and having an end snugly fittedV between said spaced webs and having a bent portion at its extremity seated against the slotted portion of said wall, said bent portion being spot welded to said webs at a point adjacent the outboard extremities thereof, said tension member at said end being additionally spot Welded to said Webs at a point substantially on the longitudinal center line of said tension member entirely inboardly of said bent portion thereof, spaced wear plates seated against the external surfaces of respective webs, andV a brake head having spaced 'Walls snugly fitted over said plates, said spaced walls and plates being spot welded to said Webs at a common point, said common point being located inboardly of the bent portion of said tension` member at thel intersection of the longitudinal center lines of said brake head and said tension member, said plates and said members projecting outboardly of said head in a direction longitudinally of the beam to afford guidemeans for slidable connection with associated support means.

2; In a brake beam of truss type, acompression member having an endV `portioncomprising spaced webs andan intervening rear wall', a tensiony member of uniform cross section throughout its length having an end snugly fitted between said spaced webs and having a bent portion at its extremity seated against said wall, said7 bentportion being spot welded to said webs at a point adjacent the outboard extremities thereof, said tension member at said end being additionally spot welded to said Webs at a point substantially on the longitudinal center line of said tension member entirely inboardly of said bent portion thereof, spaced wear plates seated against the external surfaces of respective webs, and a brake head having spaced walls snugly tted over said plates, said spaced walls and plates being spot welded to said webs at a common point, said common point being located intermediate the aforementioned weld points inboardly of the bent portion of said tension member at the intersection of the longitudinal center lines of said brake head and said tension member, said plates and said members projecting outboardly of said head in a direction longitudinally of the .beam to afford guide means for slidable connection with associated support means.

3. In a brake beam of truss type, a compression member having an end portion comprising spaced webs and an intervening rear Wall, a tension member of substantially uniform cross section throughout its length extending between said spaced webs and having a bent portion at its extremity seated against said Wall, said bent portion being spot-welded to said webs at a point adjacent the outboard extremities thereof, said tension member being additionally spot-welded to said Webs at a point substantially on the longitudinal center line of said tension member inboardly of said bent portion thereof, spaced Wear plates seated against the external surfaces of respective webs, and a brake head having portions snugly tted over said plates, said brake head portions and said plates being spot-welded to said webs at a common point disposed substantially at the intersection of the longitudinal center lines of said brake head and said tension member, said plates and said members projecting out-boardly of said head longitudinally of the beam to afford guide means for connection with associated support means,

WALTER H. BASELT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,170,121 Busch Aug. 22, 1939 1,690,377 Pugh Nov. 6, 1928 2,250,617 Argentin July 29, 1941 1,933,484 Ragsdale Oct. 31, 1933 2,291,621 Gunn Aug. 4, 1942 2,170,113 Busch Aug. 22, 1939 2,170,116 Busch Aug. 22, 1939 2,329,247 Busse Sept, 14, 1943 2,350,671 Busch June 6, 1944 2,356,720 Aurien et al Aug, 22, 1944 2,170,112 Busch Aug. 22, 1939 

